Thursday, June 30, 2011

tank top thursday

tankwip
I'm starting a new blogmeme because I missed WIP Wednesday. I suspect I may be the only immediate participant (although I could probably talk round fellow tank top fans Audrey and Vikki).

I love tank tops me! I have a couple of shop bought ones that I basically wore on alternate days throughout the whole of last winter. They are just really comfortable, nice fitting and cosy to wear. The lack of sleeves never seems to adversely affect my core temperature, they are easy to throw on under a coat, and they chime quite well with the massive-geek-about-town look that I generally favour.

It's silly, really, that I haven't made more of them so far. So this is one I started knitting last week to use up some leftover bits of lovely Shetland jumperweight, and to start on some beautiful Wild Fire Fibres Shetland handspun, from the trunk show. The bottom bit is 25g-ish of Natural Shetland, which I think is now renamed Shetland Supreme. The blue stripe is just under a 25g ball of Shetland Spindrift in Blue Lovat, and the dark brown is the handspun. I'm foolhardily making it up as I go along. I did a provisional cast on and a knitted hem, which gives it a nicely weighted bottom edge. There's some stocking stitch and a bit of fair isle type twiddling, because it seemed rude not to in Shetland yarn. I was thinking I was just going to be brave and wing the neckline but, jammily, I have just discovered High Street. This pattern is also bottom up and one of the sizes has exactly the same stitch count as my top! Which is full of win, as I am essentially quite lazy, and was nervous about the potentially ruinous amount of frogging and reknitting of lovely handspun that would inevitably follow any attempt to improvise the difficult bit. My gauge is smaller so it may need a bit of modification, but hopefully I can minimize Crimes against Shetland *makes sacrifice to appease ancient Pictish gods*. If it works out ok I'll write up a bit more detail for fellow trainspotters tank top enthusiasts.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

it's looking gorgeous so far, and as I am casting on a new vest soon I will join the Tank Top Thursday meme next week

rubbishknitter said...

hooray! *applauds excitedly*

Kate said...

I see your Tank Top Thursday and raise you Flip Flop Friday. :-D

Anonymous said...

It's so pretty! I totally approve! I have lots of tank top plans AND Shetland/tweed related plans now, thanks to your encouragement!
Loving the new lens - I can't wait to try out some project photography with it - hoping Cara will finish her Woolly Wormhead hat so I can use her as a guinea pig for arty shots (I haven't told her that yet, merely nagged her to finish it).

Anonymous said...

You? Knit something in Shetland? Never! (Off to cast on a bajillion tank tops in anticipation of Tank Top Thursday now being A Thing)